


Of strawberries and love

by maanorchidee



Series: A New Direction OCs in a Klaine drabble [6]
Category: Glee
Genre: Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, Hotels, M/M, Oneshot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-14
Updated: 2017-07-14
Packaged: 2018-12-02 02:39:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,457
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11500050
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maanorchidee/pseuds/maanorchidee
Summary: Kurt's been working at a restaurant in a hotel for years now, so he's seen a lot of things. One day, a father and two little kids enter the restaurant. Kurt slowly starts to get to know them, and he wants more.





	Of strawberries and love

**Author's Note:**

> Bonjour. This story originally started as my contribution for the Klaine Summer Challenge 2017 Day 14, but it ended up very long and I decided to post it outside of the challenge. Hell, I’ve even started to write a part two focusing on Blaine’s POV of the story.
> 
> It’s sort of based on something that happened at my work. A mother and two little kids arrived one day and I talked to them all the time. I wanted to remember them, so I decided to do it through Klaine fanfiction.
> 
> Whereas this is a bit based on those kids, they’re not the same (the kids in the story aren’t even named after them). At one point, “my” story stops anyway, since I obviously didn’t fall in love with the mother.
> 
> But Kurt will fall in love with a certain father. Enjoy

Sometimes, your dreams don’t come true. That doesn’t mean you can’t be happy. Kurt didn’t become a fashion designer or a Broadway star. He is still working in the same restaurant.

He started working at the hotel after graduating from NYADA. He auditioned every now and then, but it never worked out. He’s working at breakfast, so he has to get up early, but after almost a decade, Kurt’s gotten used to it.

And he’s happy.

His former friend, Rachel, didn’t understand. She’s already a two-time Tony winner, and Kurt just knows that back then she pitied Kurt and didn’t believe it when Kurt told her time after time that he was genuinely happy. He is happy living in his apartment with his cat. He’s happy working like this. He’s found his happiness elsewhere.

And who knows? Many celebrities gained fame at a later age. It might still happen, but Kurt just isn’t crushed by the fact that it hasn’t happened. Yet. 

Whereas there are crazy people staying at the hotel (like a man peeing against the building), some people make his day brighter. 

One day, a man and two little children appear in the restaurant. The man seems a bit stressed out, because his youngest daughter tries to crawl out of her seat the entire time.

“Layla, for the last time, please sit down!”

The kid, who must be around one or two years old, screams and Kurt feels bad for the man, especially when the other daughter dumps a whole lot of ketchup on her plate.

“Suzanne!” the man says sternly when he sees his eldest daughter making a mess.

“I like the colour of it,” Suzanne says back. 

Kurt laughs to himself. Usually, messy and loud kids make him even more grumpy, but there’s something about these kids that makes Kurt’s day brighter. They sit for one more hour (and Layla tries to jump out of her seat several times) before they pack up their things and go back to their room.

* * *

The next day, they’re back. 

While Kurt’s cleaning up, Layla keeps staring at him and her eyes follow him everywhere. Kurt waves sweetly and Layla smiles back.

“I see you’ve made a friend,” Gloria whispers towards Kurt. Gloria is Kurt’s favourite co-worker. He even considers her a friend, even though she is years younger.

“Oh shush, isn’t she cute?”

Gloria tries to roll her eyes, but it’s very unconvincing. Everyone can see that the kids are adorable. Gosh, even their father looks adorable. 

The father gets up to grab more food for his kids and Layla is still following Kurt. Suzanne is too busy eating strawberries to notice Kurt.

“Hi Layla,” Kurt says and Layla quickly looks away. She’s been seen.

Kurt just shakes his head and smiles. He continues working.

* * *

After two days off, Kurt’s back.

So are Suzanne, Layla, and their father. 

“Come on, Layla, you have to eat this apple, okay? Only then you can have another croissant. Layla, please.” 

The father tries to make Layla eat another piece of apple, but Layla turns her head away. 

“I want the apple, daddy,” Suzanne says happily. Her plate is filled with fruit.

“But your sister needs one as well,” the father says, but Layla still shakes her head.  

“Poor man,” Kurt hears. Gloria is standing behind him. “He’s been trying to make the kid eat fruit for days now. I don’t think he’ll succeed.”

“How long has he been here?” Kurt tries to count the days. This family has been here for almost a week.

“Long for a family,” Gloria says, “I wonder why they’re here. I don’t think the center of New York is a suitable place to go on vacation with two small kids. Especially not with that little rascal.” She nods towards Layla, who is starting to climb out of her seat again.

Then she notices Kurt and Gloria. Kurt waves back, and this time, Layla doesn’t turn away. Kurt sees that as a win.

* * *

“Okay, and then daddy might take us to the park!” Suzanne is talking to her sister about the plans for the day. Their father is getting more food for them.

Layla claps her hands.

Suzanne eats another strawberry and she tries to feed one to Layla, who shakes her head. The kids are as adorable as ever.

Suzanne notices Kurt staring. “Do you like strawberries?”

At first, Kurt’s a big taken aback. Most of the time, kids don’t talk to him, but Suzanne has other plans. “Yes, I do.”

“I do too,” Suzanne points towards her bowl filled with strawberries, “I think they are the bestest fruit of all. My sister doesn’t like fruit.”

When Layla hears the word ‘fruit’, she starts to say: “Nooooo, noooooooo! Fruuut no.”

“Everyone needs at least some fruit,” Kurt tells her, but Layla shakes her head again. 

“I agree!” Suzanne says happily.

When the father arrives with a plate of fruit, he seems alarmed. “Oh, God, sorry. Were they too loud?” he asks.

“What, oh no. We’re just talking about strawberries,” Kurt reassures him. Kurt can finally get a good look at him. He seems around Kurt’s age, but he also seems a bit worn down. That doesn’t make him less adorable, especially with that striped bowtie.

“Look daddy, I have strawberries!” Suzanne shows her father her bowl of strawberries. 

“Yummy,” the father says and then turns to Layla, “Layla, I brought you another apple.”

“Noooooo, noooooo!” Layla stands up in her seat and she shakes her head.

The father sighs and turns to Kurt. “What do I do?”

Kurt has zero parenting experience, so he doesn’t know. “I’m sorry if I made them a bit more, uhm, active. I just love these kids. Every time they enter the breakfast room, I can’t help but smile.”

The father relaxes, now that he knows that Kurt isn’t here to tell the kids to calm down. “Really? Oh, well, thanks. They’re the lights of my life.”

“They’re adorable,” Kurt says, “Can I ask you something?”

“Sure,” the father says and he puts down the plate of apples in front of Layla, who is still shaking her head.

“I always love it to see people come back, and I can’t help but wonder why people are here.”

The father must’ve gotten what Kurt wanted to ask. “Oh, we’re about to move to New York, but we still need to sign the lease to the apartment. The old owners are still moving out.”

“You’re moving to New York?” With two small kids?

“Yes, I got a job offer,” the father says, and he seems genuinely excited, “Back home, I’ve always worked with music and theater, and New York is obviously a huge theater place. How could I refuse?” He turns towards his children. “So, we packed up our things and left Westerville behind.”

“That is wonderful,” Kurt says and he means it. He knows what it’s like to love music and theater.

“It is, uhm,” the father looks at Kurt’s name tag, “Kurt. I am Blaine, by the way, and this is Suzanne.”

“Hi!”

“And Layla.”

Layla is still shaking her head.

“And we’re very excited.”

Kurt can see Gloria gesturing towards him. “Well, thanks for talking to me, but I guess I have to help my friend out.”

Blaine follows Kurt’s gaze and he sees Gloria waving to Kurt. 

“Of course, and it was nice talking to you as well.”

* * *

The next time Kurt’s at work, they’ve run out of strawberries. Kurt’s the one to bring the news.

“No strawberries?” Suzanne asks with wide and sad eyes.

“Something has gone wrong, Suzanne,” Kurt tells the little kid. It was the mistake of one of his bosses. They forgot to order the new strawberries on time. Those things can happen, but the look on Suzanne’s face makes Kurt’s heart shatter in million pieces.

Kurt has to continue work, but he can hear Blaine saying: “What about an apple today? Maybe we can make Layla eat one as well.”

During the workday. Kurt makes sure to stop by at the table several times to talk to the family. It obviously makes both parties very happy.

“Hey!” Suzanne says when Kurt passes their table again, “Come here! I know something. I made a plan.”

“A plan?” Kurt asks.

“Yes, why don’t you hire new guards? You can devide them in two groups and have one group guard during the daytime and the other sleep during the daytime?” Suzanne tells Kurt, who has no idea what she’s talking about, “And then the other group can guard during nighttime so that the first group can sleep during nighttime. So you can guard the food. You should tell your boss!”

“You want to hire guards to pay attention to the restaurant?” Kurt asks to be sure.

“Yes, they can protect the strawberries from thieves.”

It takes a while for Kurt, but it clicks. “You think the strawberries were stolen?” Kurt asks and he tries not to burst out in laughs.

“YES!”

“Suzanne, the strawberries weren’t stolen,” Kurt tells her, but Suzanne is convinced that thieves have taken the strawberries. An elderly couple is laughing when they hear Suzanne expand her plan.

“Tell your boss!” Suzanne insists.

“Oh I will,” Kurt says and he continues his work. He does spot Blaine at the coffee machines, so he makes a small detour.

“Blaine!” he says and Blaine jumps back in shock. He must’ve been in deep thoughts. Luckily he didn’t spill his coffee.

It’s the first time Kurt’s speaking to him directly, since usually, the kids are around.

“Oh, Kurt, sorry,” he apologizes, “I didn’t see you there.”

“I won’t take long. I just need to tell you something. Suzanne is convinced the strawberries were stolen, so she gave me a plan to hire guards to protect the strawberries.”

Blaine snorts. “Oh my God.”

“She’s very smart, if I may so.”

Blaine is still smiling. “That is my fault. I may have told her the strawberries were stolen. I told her it was a joke, but apparently she didn’t get it.” He picks up his coffee cup. “I will try again.” He winks and he walks towards his children. Kurt’s heart skips a beat and he continues his work.

* * *

The next day, Suzanne basically tackles Kurt.

“Do you remember my plan?” she says loudly, causing others, including Gloria, to look.

“Yes, I do.”

“Did you tell your boss?”

“No, she wasn’t there,” Kurt lies.

Suzanne’s face falls. “Will you tell her today?” she asks. 

Kurt nods, but he knows he won’t. How does he explain this?

“Suzanne, I told you I was joking,” Blaine says, but Suzanne doesn’t seem to hear him.

Kurt leads the family to their table and he asks a couple of more questions. He’s been dying to know more about the family, but he also knows they’ll have to leave the hotel one day.

“How long will you be staying?” he asks, trying to hide his sadness. He doesn’t want them to go.

“We’ll sign the lease on Friday and then New York will be ours,” Blaine answers and he puts a struggling Layla in her high-chair. 

Kurt nods, but he can already feel the sadness flow over him. That’s in a week, but he’s going back to Lima to see his dad for a while, so he’ll only see them two more times.

For the first time in his life, he regrets taking a long weekend off.

“Wow, that’s very soon.”

“Yes, we’re very exc-  _Layla, please don’t!_ ” Layla is standing in her seat again. Blaine puts her down again, but it’s no use. Layla has a mind on her own. 

Kurt looks around the room. There’s one thing Kurt has noticed: Blaine is utterly alone with the kids. His wife or husband is nowhere to be seen. He’s about to ask when Gloria taps him on the shoulder.

“Stop flirting and come help me,” she whispers.

Kurt blushes, but luckily Blaine’s too preoccupied with Layla to have noticed. 

“I was not flirting,” Kurt says and he means it. He was just asking Blaine questions. Maybe it looked like flirting, but it wasn’t that.

“I know, I just wanted to mess with you,” Gloria grins, “But if I may say, your reaction is quite adorable. Do you wish you were flirting with him?”

Kurt’s about to say “No” when he realises that he can’t. He really wasn’t flirting, he wasn’t even interested in Blaine, but he can’t deny that Blaine is cute. His kids are too, but it’s not the same.

And Kurt’s heart did skip a beat when they had that one conversation. Blaine’s sweet and kind towards his children. They already have their love for music and theater in common. He always looks amazing in his well-put outfits. He has a kind smile and beautiful eyes.

“Oh… God…” Kurt stops walking, and one of his co-workers almost crashes against him, but Kurt doesn’t care. Gloria stops as well and turns to look at her friend.

“Hm?”

“Gloria, I think I may have a problem.”

Gloria’s face falls when she realises what Kurt’s talking about. “I was joking!”

“I know.”

“But you’re not joking now.”

“No,” Kurt says.

Gloria pats him on the back and gestures to him to continue walking. They’re blocking the path.

“How could this happen, Gloria? I didn’t- I wasn’t even checking him out or anything. I was really just talking to him and his kids.”

Gloria guides him towards the kitchen. “Sometimes, love is a strange thing.”

Kurt’s pretty sure he’s not in love with Blaine, but he does like him, and not in a friendly way. But Blaine has kids, so there must be a significant other in his life. This is even worse than falling for a straight person!

But what if Blaine’s straight?

Wow, Kurt always manages to fall for the wrong guys.

The day goes on, and after an hour, Blaine and his kids are ready to go. They’re standing at the coffee machines to get something to go. Suzanne is waiting for her father, but then she sees Kurt.

“Did you tell her?”

“Not yet.”

Christine starts to run around and Layla follows her. Usually, Kurt would tell running children to stop, but they’re adorable.

“Kids!” Blaine says sternly, but his children are laughing and running underneath tables. Kurt can’t help but smile. But then, Suzanne hugs him before continuing her run.

Kurt’s silent.

Suzanne just hugged him. She’s so sweet.

She does it several more times. Every time she passes Kurt, she hugs her, and then continues her run. 

“Guess what I want to be when I grow up?” she says and Layla runs after her. Blaine’s shaking his head, but he can’t make them stop.

“Uhm? Do you like animals? A vet?”

“No,” Suzanne laughs.

“A chef?”

“No!”

“I don’t know, Suzanne.”

“A knight!” Suzanne says proudly and she makes some karate moves, “I want to be a knight, so that I can protect the strawberries.”

This time, Blaine can’t keep up his stern façade and he starts to laugh. “ _Suzanne!_ ”

Kurt also can’t hold it in. “Okay then.”

“Yes, so when I grow up and become a good guard, you need to call me.”

“I need to call you?” Kurt asks.

“For the strawberries? Are they there yet?”

Just then, Kurt’s boss passes them. Kurt stops her. “Are there new strawberries?”

The boss is caught off-guard at first. “Uhm, no, I think they’ll be back tomorrow. Why?”

Before Kurt can answer, Suzanne walks to her. “I have a plan!” She elaborates on her plan and Kurt’s boss is very confused. “And then I become a knight to protect them!”

Kurt’s boss looks towards Kurt.

“She thinks the strawberries are stolen,” Kurt clarifies, and another couple starts to laugh. Kurt’s boss is more confused, but she just goes with it.

“Alright Suzanne, that’s enough. We need to go back to our room!” Blaine says, “Now where is Layla?” 

Layla is stuck underneath some chairs.

“Layla, I swear to God,” Blaine grumbles as he helps his daughter to break free. Suzanne is encouraging him.

“Say bye,” Blaine tells his kids.

“Bye bye!” Suzanne waves. Layla tries to say bye as well, but she is distracted by Blaine’s coffee cup.

* * *

Back in Lima, Kurt’s lying in his bed in his childhood bedroom. It’s never that amazing to go back to Ohio, but his father and stepmother have aged, so them flying to New York all the time isn’t an option anymore.

There’s only one upside to Ohio: it is quiet when needed.

New York is always so fast and loud. Kurt loves it, that’s why he lives there. It thrills him, but sometimes he needs the quiet and calm nature of Ohio. It makes it perfect to think.

Kurt has a crush on one of the people staying in his hotel. It’s not just someone: it’s a father of two kids.

Kurt’s never known this was possible. He’d never thought he’d find love at his workplace. His co-workers are fine. It’s fun to be around them, but they’re not dating material. Of course, Kurt’s life never goes easily, so he had to fall for a hotel guest.

_Okay, that’s okay. There are people who find love in even stranger places- just read BuzzFeed._

Kurt nods to himself. It’s better to make peace with it. After all, what is bad about a little crush? Blaine is a great guy, it could’ve been way worse. And the kids? Well, Kurt will think about that later. They are the sweetest, though.

Kurt’s slowly falling asleep, but then it hits him. He sits up.

_They are leaving in less than a week._

* * *

“What is troubling you, kid?”

“Nothing is troubling me, dad.”

“Kurt, it’s 3AM. You’re sitting in the kitchen drinking a glass of warm milk. I know you,” Burt sit next to his son, “Wanna talk about it?”

Kurt groans in frustration, but Burt doesn’t flinch. He’s used to his son’s dramatics. 

“Is this about a guy? Or about your job? Fashion?”

“The first,” Kurt admits, “It’s awful.”

“Tell me about it,” Burt says. Some kids may feel embarrassed while talking about crushes, even when they’re Kurt’s age, but Kurt’s not like that. His father has never given him a reason to.

“His name is Blaine. He stays at the hotel with his two children. He’s leaving on Friday,” Kurt hangs his head, “I won’t be there when they’ll leave, since I don’t have to work on Friday, so I will only see them two more times, on Tuesday and Thursday, and I don’t want them to go.”

Burt listens to his son’s rambling. Kurt tells his dad everything: about Blaine’s bowties, Suzanne’s obsession with strawberries and her wanting to become a knight, Layla’s energy and her disgust of fruit. It’s nothing much, but Kurt has the feeling he’s gotten to know them very well. Even Ms. Alana, who’s been staying at the hotel for two years, isn’t that well-known to him.

“What do I do, dad? I can’t ask them to stay, that’d be idiotic and inappropriate, but I just wished I would have more time to get to know them better,” Kurt says, “And I can’t just ask for their number or address. I’m at work!”

Burt puts his hand on his son’s shoulder. “I am really sorry I have to be the one to tell you this, Kurt, but there’s nothing you can do.”

* * *

Kurt hasn’t been sleeping well, which is a bit unfortunate when you have to get up around 6 in order to go to work. He’s only had one hour of sleep, and he’s this close to calling in sick, but then he remembers he has two more days left.

_Do it for Layla and Suzanne_ , Kurt tells himself as he rolls out of bed,  _and of course for Blaine._

He manages to make it to work in one piece without stepping on his sleeping cat. Gloria greets him, and Kurt’s just awake enough to say something back.

But, to Kurt’s frustration, the family doesn’t show up. And today, there are finally strawberries. Since he never learned their last name or room number, he can’t check if they’re still there. But they must be, since Blaine told him they’re leaving on Friday.

After one more hour of waiting, Kurt gives up. He’s dead tired and he doesn’t have the energy.

Gloria gives him a sad look.

Two hours before his shift ends, they enter the room. Suzanne sees him and immediately runs to him to hug him. “Hi!” she yells, “You’re back!”

“And you’re late,” Kurt says, “I was afraid you weren’t coming.” 

“She’s been asking about you non-stop,” Blaine says. He’s carrying Layla who looks quite tired. 

“Well, Suzanne, i have big news for you. The strawberries are back.”

“The thieves brought them back?” Suzanne asks happily. Blaine groans, but Kurt just rolls with it. Kurt brings them to a table and then leaves to get some strawberries.

Gloria winks and Kurt tells her to shut up.

They talk a lot, mostly about Blaine’s new job. It’s for a possible Off-Broadway show and he’s really excited, Kurt also tells a bit more about himself. Blaine’s very impressed when he hears Kurt graduated from NYADA and he’s amused when he finds out Kurt’s also from Ohio.

Eventually, Kurt has to go back to work. At one point, he passes the family and Suzanne turns around and loudly says: “I love you, will you marry me?”

Blaine starts to laugh and even Kurt can barely hold it in. Did a four year old just propose to him? Yes, that happened.

“Suzanne, you are a little bit too young to get married,” Blaine tells her.

“But what if I get older?” Suzanne asks her dad, “When I get older, I can marry him.”

“Suzanne, when you’re older, I’ll be even more older,” Kurt tells her.

“And by then, Kurt’s probably married to his wife,” Blaine adds.

“Actually a husband, but hopefully, yes,” Kurt says.

“To his husband, then,” Blaine corrects himself. This only gives Suzanne another idea. 

Excited, she turns to her sister. “Layla, if he can’t marry me, then he needs to marry dad.” Layla claps her hands in approval.

“Kids, kids, no,” Blaine protests, but both Suzanne and Layla continue to talk about their plan.

Blaine turns to Kurt and he looks a bit embarrassed. “I’m sorry for this,” he says, “I recently got divorced and I guess they don’t get the fact that marriage is not on my mind right now and-  _Layla! Sit down!_ -especially now that Suzanne has entered her Disney phase.”

“You should encourage Disney phases!” Kurt says, but he can’t help but wonder what happened. Kurt now understands why Blaine’s always on his own. He simply isn’t married.

Anymore.

“I should, I know, but there are a lot of fairy tale weddings and Suzanne hates the fact that she missed out on mine, even though I try telling her that it was not like a fairy tale at all, so she’s desperate for me to get married again so that she can be flower girl,” Blaine sighs.

“Daddy was left behind,” Suzanne tells Kurt, “Papa is stupid.”

_Papa._  Blaine was married to another man. This is brand new, and very useful information.

“Suzanne!” Blaine says sternly. Blaine turns red. “Uhm, yeah…”

“He walked out on you?” Kurt asks and then mentally slaps himself for asking such a private question.

“I walked out on him. Or he walked out on me?” Blaine seems a bit confused for a while, “I guess we just both walked away. I got the job offer and he simply didn’t want to follow me to New York. To make things better or worse, he didn’t want the kids. He leaving me was okay, but him leaving the kids like they were yesterday’s garbage only confirmed something I’d been wondering for ages: my ex-husband is a dick.”

“Dick, dick, dick!” Layla chants.

“ _Layla!_ ” Blaine says.

“DICK, DICK, DICK!” Suzanne chimes in as well. Other people are staring. Kurt can barely keep in his laugh.

“Yes, I get it,” Kurt says, still trying not to laugh, “Your ex-husband is a real  _mean-head_.” It sounds lame, but he’d rather have two little kids yell ‘mean-head’ than ‘dick’.

“Mean-head!” Layla shouts and she smashes her croissant.

“Yes, he was a mean-head, and I was an idiot,” Blaine laughs bitterly, “I should’ve seen this coming, but nope. I can’t believe I was married to him for almost a decade- seven years! The only good things that disaster gave me are my kids. I don’t regret them, but I just wished they hadn’t have to go through that.” He has a sad look on his face when he turns to Layla. “She’s only one year old and her father already left her.”

Layla obviously doesn’t notice the change of atmosphere. She’s found a new hobby: smashing her food, and Blaine’s too sad thinking about the past to tell her to stop.

“I’m sorry, it’s not even 10am and you have to listen to me lamenting about the past,” Blaine tries to joke, “Anyway, he’s gone and we’re in New York. Time to start fresh.”

After that, Suzanne starts to talk about how she made a castle out of her food by dropping cereal in pudding and the conversation shifts away from the sad past. Later, they get up to leave and say goodbye.

Kurt waves at them, but the moment they’re out of sight, he can’t help but feel sad. Sure, Kurt’s love life hasn’t been extraordinairy either, but at least he wasn’t married to a man who is, to quote Blaine, a dick. He can’t believe someone as sweet and kind would marry someone who would leave two kids behind without a second thought. Blaine deserves someone better and so do Layla and Suzanne.

_He deserves someone like me._

Kurt almost drops the plates he was holding. He  _did not_  just think that. No, in reality, it’s even worse.

“He deserves someone like you?” Gloria says playfully, “So he’s single?”

Kurt had said it out loud. Now it really is a good thing Blaine has left the room. 

“Gloria! Get back to work!” Kurt says quickly.

“Sure thing,  _boss_ ,” Gloria says, but she’s still smiling, “Just so you know, I am totally rooting for you and I told my friends and they’re rooting for you two as well.”

“You told Alice and Phoebe?” Kurt asks, shocked, “Gloria!”

“Relax, they don’t even know you personally. We just hope you two will find each other and all that emotional crap,” Gloria says, “Now, let’s get to work.”

* * *

Thursday arrives.

Also known as Kurt’s last day with the family. He gets out of bed, puts on his work clothes, pets his cat, and goes to work. He feels sad knowing it’s the last time they’ll be there. He’s bought them a small keychain as a goodbye present, because he can.

To make things worse: it’s Gloria’s day off.

Kurt considers asking Blaine where they’re going, but isn’t that a bit too much? He might as well ask if he can stalk Blaine.

Around 9, they arrive and of course, Suzanne runs to him to hug him the minute she sees him. They talk as if nothing’s wrong. Maybe this feeling is one-sided, but Kurt doesn’t want to think about that. He jokes about strawberries with Suzanne, he tries to help Blaine with feeding Layla an apple, he and Blaine chat about the future… it’s all so normal.

Of course, Kurt also has a job to do, but every time he passes the table, Suzanne grabs his hand to pull him back and how can he refuse?

It’s a miracle that his boss has never gotten mad at him for talking instead of working. 

When Kurt’s refilling some food, he can see them get up. They’re about to leave.

A part of Kurt thinks it’s a bit sad that they were planning on leaving without saying goodbye, but another part of him doesn’t care about that now. He still has that keychain!

They’re almost out of the room when Kurt stops them. “Blaine!”

It’s not very graceful, but Kurt basically pushes the keychain in Blaine’s hands. “This is for you and the kids,” Kurt says, “A goodbye present. It’s for the keys to the new place.”

Blaine doesn’t know what to say. He seems a bit surprised. “Wow, uhm, wow.”

“What is that?” Suzanne saves the day by distracting them, “Can I see?”

“It’s for the new house,” Blaine says and both Suzanne and Layla look at it.

“It’s go glitter-y,” Suzanne says happily. Layla takes it and starts to examine it. 

“Wow,” she says and Suzanne wants to take a closer look as well.

“I just.. thank you,” Blaine says to Kurt and then tries to hug him. It’s a bit awkward since Kurt didn’t see it coming, but they manage. “That, uhm, was a professional hug.”

“Of course,” Kurt says. He steps aside to let them pass.

“Bye bye,” Suzanne says and Layla waves. 

“We’ll try to visit, isn’t that right girls?” Blaine says to the kids and he takes Layla’s hand.

“Yes,” Suzanne says.

Kurt doesn’t know how Blaine will manage to do that, since he doesn’t know Kurt’s schedule and it changes every week, but Kurt just nods and says: “I’m looking forwards to it.”

Blaine looks like he want to say anything else, but instead he gestures to Suzanne to follow him and Layla.

“Bye bye!” Suzanne yells again while they’re walking away.

“Bye,” Kurt says.

* * *

Of course, they can’t visit that easily. Whereas Kurt would love it, he doesn’t think about it. Maybe he should’ve asked more.

Hell, he doesn’t even know their last name.

A week passes.

And another one.

And  _another_  one. 

Kurt knows they’ve basically disappeared from his life. He never had to ask them for their roomnumber, so he never got their last name. But then again, if Kurt were to look up Blaine’s social media profiles, then he’d be a stalker.

He and Gloria still talk about them, since they’re definitely worth remembering. More families with little kids show up, but it’s not the same. After all this time, Kurt’s used to them not being there.

That changes one day.

Somewhere in the morning, Blaine enters the restaurant and takes a seat. Okay, first he makes a cup of coffee for himself, but that’s less important.

“Welcome back,” Kurt tries not to sound too enthusiastic, “I see you’re by yourself today?”

“Oh, the kids are back home,” Blaine says, “My parents are in New York and they wanted some time with them. Not that I mind, since I’d rather not see them.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

“Ah well, I had the choice between drinking a whole bottle of whiskey to forget their existence, or to come here,” Blaine shrugs, “This is a bit more responsible, especially since I have two kids. That, and I wanted to ask you something.”

Kurt raises his eyebrows. “You wanted to ask me something?”

Blaine nods. “Please, I hope this isn’t all too creepy, since we barely know each other, but I want to ask you for a favour.”

“Shoot.”

“My kids miss you, especially Suzanne, and I have to go to this meeting later this week and I need someone to look after him. Normally, I’d ask the nanny to do it, but they kind of want you.”

Even though Blaine knows no one else in the room, Kurt still looks around to make sure he’s talking to Kurt. 

“Me?”

“Yes, you,” Blaine says, “Please help me out here. Suzanne has even drawn this for you to convince you.” Blaine opens his bag and hands Kurt a piece of paper. It’s a crayon drawing of him and Suzanne eating strawberries. Kurt also assumes that the black dot wearing a yellow dress is Layla.

How can he refuse?

“I’ll give you my number after I’m done. Text me the address.”

“Deal.”

* * *

“How do I look?” Blaine asks Kurt. 

Kurt expected a simple ‘Hello’ or ‘Hey, how are you?’ but the moment Blaine opened the door, he asked that.

“Uhm, great,” Kurt says and he quickly analyses Blaine’s outfit. It’s a bit too dark for Kurt’s liking, but maybe Blaine needs it for the meeting.

“Just great?” Blaine asks nervously.

“Why are you so worked up? You look fine.”

“This is a meeting with possible investors for a show, of course I am nervous,” Blaine says, but he does step aside so that Kurt can enter the apartment, “I’ve worked my ass off for the past year, even in Ohio. I didn’t expect it to go this fast. Usually, it takes years to create a show, but apparently the director met some people at this gala- and oh my God, I can’t do this.”

Kurt grabs him by the shoulders and steers him to the room that turns out to be the living room. Suzanne and Layla are watching TV and they’re too invested to even notice that Kurt has arrived.

“Okay, calm down. You cannot be a nervous wreck at your meeting,” Kurt tells him, recalling his management classes from NYADA, “You need to make a great first impression. You look fine, Blaine. You look fancy, business-like, cute, and still casual enough to not look like you want something too much. Take a deep breath and go. I will look after the kids. Oh, and don’t drink too much. Rachel did that once and it cost her a role.”

“Rachel? Rachel Berry?” Blaine asks, “Oh my God, you know her?”

“I used to,” Kurt tells him, “We drifted apart after her ego got too much. Now go!” He’s literally not in the mood to talk about his former friendship with Rachel.

Blaine takes his time to calm down and then walks towards his kids. “Layla, Suzanne, Kurt is here.”

When Suzanne hears his name, she jerks her head towards Kurt. “Hi!” she jumps off the couch and runs to him, “Did you like my drawing?”

“Very much,” Kurt tells her and then waves to Layla, “Hi Layla!”

“Anyway, behave!” Blaine tells them, “We don’t want Kurt to run out screaming, right?”

“Right!” Suzanne salutes. Layla is watching TV again.

“Okay, you have my number. I also wrote down the number of a friend of mine,” Blaine points towards a piece of paper, “and just some general rules the kids have to follow. Food and snacks are in the fridge. The kids can show you their shared room. If you need anything, the next-door neighbour won’t help you, so you might want to know that. And I-”

“Blaine, it’ll be fine,” Kurt reassures him. 

Blaine takes a deep breath. “Okay, really thank you for doing this.” He kneels next to Suzanne. “Be nice to Kurt. Give daddy a kiss.”

“Bye daddy!” Suzanne gives Blaine a kiss on the cheek. 

“Layla, I am going,” Blaine says when he sits next to Layla, “Bye bye.”

Layla finally acknowledges him. “Bye dadjie,” she says and waves.

Blaine leaves and Kurt’s alone with the kids. Taking care of Layla will be easy, since she is not in the mood to leave the TV, but Suzanne is bursting with energy.

“I have strawberries in the fridge!” she basically jumps up and down.

This is going to be a long night.

* * *

It was supposed to be a one time thing, but it turned into a weekly thing very quickly. Apparently, whatever show Blaine was working on is soaring, so Blaine’s not home most evenings. The nanny takes care of the kids during the day times, but Kurt comes over more often for the night times.

One day, he opens the door (by now, Blaine has given him his own key) to find Blaine holding his phone.

“I was about to call you,” he says when he sees Kurt.

“About what?”

“They cancelled,” Blaine says, “Apparently, one of the actors has a bad case of food poisoning. I have the evening off.”

“Oh,” Kurt tries not to sound disappointed. He always looks forward to these evenings. “Well, I have to work tomorrow morning, so it’s not a problem if I-”

“Stay?” Suzanne asks happily, “You can still stay here. Daddy, can Kurt stay here? We can be here with the four of us.”

“I… I don’t know, Suzanne,” Blaine says, “He’s probably happy he can have an early night.”

“Oh, I really don’t mind,” Kurt says and he has an idea. He puts his bag down to show Blaine that he’s really not planning on leaving.

“Okay, okay,” Blaine seems a bit nervous, “That’s totally okay. I do need to cook dinner, since I was planning on eating out, but that obviously isn’t going to happen now. And I’m going to get changed. Look after them.” And in a flash, he’s gone.

“Daddy is nervous,” Suzanne states.

“Why?” Kurt sits next to her. Suzanne shrugs. She is a kid and probably doesn’t care. 

“Dad music!” Layla says happily.

“I know, I love music as well,” Kurt says.

Layla then points towards him. “You sing?“ 

Kurt nods and Layla’s eyes light up. “I love sing too!” 

And just like that. Layla starts to ‘sing’. It’s a mix of silent yelling and growling and she throws in an occasional word every now and then. Suzanne joins her, although she has lyrics.

Kurt thinks it’s adorable and joins in as well, because why not? 

The three of them keep singing and Kurt doesn’t even feel bad for their neighbours. After all, Blaine’s next-door neighbour is awful.

When Layla tries to hit a high note, they hear someone laughing. Blaine’s been filming it on his phone the entire time.

“Don’t mind me,” he says when he notices that he’s been spotted, “Pretend I’m not even here.” Although he does come closer to have a better shot. 

Blaine seems more relaxed now that he sees that his kids are having fun. He also is dressed better. Even though most of the fancy clothing has been replaced with something more comfortable, he’s still wearing a bowtie.

“Dadjie, Kurt sing,” Layla points towards Kurt.

“I see that, Layla,” Blaine says and then points his camera towards Kurt, “Give me a smile!”

Kurt poses and the kids laugh.

“Daddy, photoshoot!” Suzanne demands.

“Oh no, not now, Suzanne,” Blaine puts his phone away, “I still need to make dinner for myself. Another time, okay?”

Suzanne pouts, but she gives in.

“Why won’t I make dinner for you?” Kurt suggests and he then realises he might be overstepping. What is he thinking? Sure, after weeks of getting snacks for him and the kids, he knows this kitchen, but won’t Blaine think it’s weird Kurt suddenly wants to make dinner for him. They aren’t like an old married couple!

“You sure?”

“When’s the last time you had an extra evening with the kids?” Kurt quickly says. It’s an excuse, but he’s also right. “Go! Have that photoshoot. Suzanne looks extra fabulous in that outfit.”

“Well, if you insist.” 

“Any requests?” Kurt asks while going through Blaine’s fridge.

“Oh, just make something. You’re perfect in any way,” Blaine says, but then realises what he said, “I mean, whatever you’ll make, it’s perfect.“ 

Kurt’s heart jumps once again.

“Yes it is,” Kurt says, a bit high-pitched, but he’s heard what Blaine said. Kurt decides to go for the light hearted approach. Then, he starts cooking.

* * *

“So, you’re yawning a lot,” Gloria says, looking amused. She’s right though. Usually, Kurt manages to be fine in the early hours of the day, even after a long night, but this time he wasn’t expecting to go to bed after midnight.

“Late night last night,” he quickly says. The two of them start cleaning up a table.

“Oh?” Gloria says, “An unexpected wild night out?”

“No, I was at Blaine’s and-  _I see the look on your face and let me tell you, it wasn’t like that._ ”

Gloria is grinning.

“I made him dinner and after we put the kids to bed we just decided to drink and well, a glass of wine really lifts the mood. We just spent hours talking.”

“’We’. You two put the kids to bed together?” Gloria asks.

“Well, Suzanne insisted,” Kurt says, which is true, but even he has to admit that it sounds weird.

“You take the plates with you. I bring the glasses to the kitchen,” Gloria suggests and oh yeah, they’re at work.

Together, they walk towards the kitchen.

“What did you guys talk about?” Of course, Gloria wasn’t done talking about it.

“Just… everything,” Kurt says, “We talked about a lot of things. I think it’s the first proper conversation with him in forever. He’s really great.”

“And you really like him.” Gloria says, still grinning. This woman can’t stop grinning. She’s too invested in Kurt’s crush on Blaine.

“And I really like him,” Kurt says and he holds the door to the kitchen open for Gloria. Just when they are about to put away the dirty dishes, Kurt’s phone rings. He must’ve forgotten to put it on mute. He quickly checks the screen: it’s Blaine.

“Speaking of the devil,” he says and he wonders why Blaine’s calling him at work. He knows Kurt’s at work.

“Go, I’ll cover for you,” Gloria says.

“I can’t,” Kurt looks around, but their boss is nowhere to be seen.

Gloria shooes him away, so against his better judgement, he picks up.

“Blaine?” he asks and he quickly hides in one of the storage rooms. He choses the one that most people overlook.

“Kurt?” It’s not Blaine, it’s Suzanne, “Yay, Siri works!”

“Suzanne? I am at work,” Kurt says sternly, “How did you even get hold of this phone? Where’s your father?”

But Suzanne giggles. “Shhh, shhh.”

“ _Suzanne_!”

“I wanted to talk to you,” Suzanne doesn’t see anything wrong about her calling Kurt at work on a probably stolen phone, “It’s about dad-dad.”

“Okay, quick.” No one has opened the door to the storage room yet, so Kurt is willing to take the risk.

“Daddy cries,” Suzanne says.

_What?_

“Suzanne… what?” Did Kurt just hear it correctly? Is Suzanne really calling Kurt for help while he’s at work?

“Daddy cried this morning,” Suzanne says sadly, “I hugged him, but he is sad. He talked about you, so I call you now.”

“Suzanne, what happened?” Kurt asks.

But before Suzanne can answer, Kurt can hear Blaine in the background. “Suzanne, where is my- what? Why are you holding my phone? Suzanne, what are you doing? Give me that. No Suzanne, now! Are you calli-” and the line goes dead.

Kurt quickly puts his phone away and hurries towards Gloria.

“Ah, there he is!” Gloria says when he sees him, “Did you find the napkins?”

Kurt quickly recalls the rules of his Improv 101 Class and says without failing: “I’d forgotten which ones. The linen ones are underneath the sink, but the paper ones aren’t in the storage room inside. I think we might have to go to the outside container for those.”

“Oh, well, I meant the linen ones.”

“Then you’re blind,” Kurt points towards the linen, “They’re clearly in sight.”

“… Thanks.”

The boss seems satisfied with their lie, because she nods and leaves them behind. The moment she’s out of earshot, Gloria turns to Kurt.

“Well?” she demands.

“It was Suzanne,” Kurt tells her.

“The eldest?” Gloria has a puzzled look on her face, but then again, why would a four year old steal a phone to call Kurt?

Kurt nods. “I don’t know what happened, but she said Blaine cried earlier this morning. Before she could tell me what happened, she hung up. Apparently, Blaine saw her with his phone. I’m going over after work.”

So he does. Blaine is a bit confused when he finds Kurt on his doorstep. He hasn’t even changed into something normal to wear. He’s still wearing his ugly work clothes and his hair is a mess. That’s how much he cares for Blaine.

“Kurt, what are you doing here? Is everything okay?”

“I could ask you the same thing. Suzanne called me. Where is she?” he pushes Blaine away and he enters the apartment. 

“At a friend’s house and Layla is taking a nap,” Blaine closes the door and he follows Kurt inside, “Really, what is going on?”

“Suzanne said you were crying and you mentioned me.” 

Blaine’s eyes widen. “Kurt, that’s nothing. I- I, uhm, I mentioned you being here last night, but she must’ve misunderstood.” 

“I enjoyed last night,” Kurt admits, and please,  _please_ , Kurt hopes Blaine isn’t going to tell him that he didn’t like it. They had a connection, or so Kurt thought. So forces himself to suggest: “But if you didn’t like it, then I won’t come over anymore when you’re at home.” 

“No, no, don’t leave!” Blaine bursts out.

“Excuse me?” Kurt asks. He had not expected Blaine’s small outburst.

Blaine blushes from embarrasement. “Again, Suzanne must’ve misunderstood me. I did mention you, but I just,” Blaine stares off into space, lost in thought.

“You just?”

“I think I realised how lonely I am sometimes,” Blaine says. Kurt can see there’s more to the story, but now he decides to let Blaine talk. 

Blaine sits down on the couch and he gestures towards Kurt to join him. “It was the first time in a while where I had fun with someone while, you know, just hanging out. My friend who lives in New York is on a business trip to Thailand and I love the kids, but it’s not the same. And I love my job, but it’s also not the same. Is it bad that I miss him in some strange way?”

Kurt almost stops breathing when he realises Blaine’s talking about the ex.

“He was a dick, and I suspect that he’s been cheating on me.  _Fuck_ , I know for sure and I’ve known for years, but I just chose to ignore it, but it was still nice to come home to someone, even though that home was a façade and oh dear, you don’t need to hear me talking about my failed marriage and loneliness.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to assume… Is there anything I can do?” Kurt asks. He watched Blaine, who just looks so devastated in his own way, and Kurt wants to be with him to help him. He just wants to make it all better for him. Kurt just want Blaine to be able to count on him.

That’s when it hits Kurt.

Blaine is thinking about it. “You can come over more often?” he says, sounding hopeful.

“Then that’s a deal.”

He’s just fallen for Blaine Anderson.

* * *

Blaine’s meeting are getting cancelled again and again and again, mostly by his possible director. Blaine complains about it a lot. Even though they both know that they don’t mind Kurt staying anyways, especially when they have time to hang out after the kids have gone to sleep, Kurt is starting to get suspicious.

“I swear, I am this close on cancelling on him for once,” Blaine mutters as he unties his bowtie and lets himself fall on his couch. Another cancellation. “If he treats all of his clients like this, then his career will fail.”

“What is his name?” Kurt asks. He’s always wondered what kind of director would cancel so often, if it’s actually true.

“Jesse St. James,” Blaine sighs and Kurt feels like someone just hit him with a brick. 

_Jesse St. James_  is cancelling? Sure, Kurt hasn’t seen him or Rachel in a long while, but if there’s one thing he knows, it’s that both of them are overly dedicated to their careers. It makes no sense. It only makes Kurt grow more suspicious.

The week after that, ‘Jesse’ cancels again. Blaine is once again annoyed, but the annoyance always fades away quickly.

So Kurt decides to take matters into his own hand and start a little investigation. Kurt has to Google Jesse and Rachel’s number, which once again shows how much they have disconnected. When he calls, Rachel picks up.

“Rachel Berry speaking.”

It is weird to hear the voice of someone who used to be Kurt’s close friend. It’s not that Kurt and the glee club members no longer speak, since he still has a very strong friendship with some of them (hell, some even live in New York as well), but some friendships just didn’t last.

“Uhm, hi Rach, this is Kurt.”

It’s silent and Kurt’s afraid Rachel will hang up.

“Kurt? Really, is it you?”

“Well, the last time I checked, yeah, it’s me,” Kurt tries to make it less awkward by joking, just like they used to, but it doesn’t work.

“Why are you calling?” Whereas Kurt’s a bit hurt that she has to ask him, he can’t blame her.

“Business,” Kurt says, because it isn’t really a lie, “I was actually looking for Jesse, but maybe you can help me as well. It’s about one of his projects. Do you know anything about that?”

“Of course I know my husband’s  _successful_  career,” Rachel says and there it is. The way she drew attention to the fact that Jesse’s career is indeed successful is the reason why they no longer speak.

“Of course,” Kurt says. He’s staring to get irritated. There’d been some spark of hope for a reconnection, but since that isn’t going to work out today, he will go straight to the point. “I am friends with an upcoming lyricist and he tells me that Jesse is directing his show. I have my doubts about that, so I just want to know if he’s telling the truth.”

“ _A true friend_  wouldn’t question somethinh like that,” Rachel says.

“A true friend also wouldn’t question someone’s life choices, but yet you exist,” Kurt sighs and he can hear Rachel gasp.

“How dare you!”

“Can we just get over with this? Tell me if Jesse’s directing him or not. It’s more useful than reliving our past, Rachel,” Kurt says, growing even more irritated.

“Fine. What show?”

Kurt realises that Blaine’s never really talked in depth about his project. Every time Kurt’s at his place, he’s there to hang out with him and the kids. He feels a bit guilty for never asking.

“Uhm, it’s Off-Broadway,” that’s all that he knows and apparently, that is enough for Rachel.

“Nope,” she says, “He doesn’t do Off-Broadway. It’s underneath his dignity.”

“You started off on Off-Broadway,” Kurt reminds her.

“And you never started at all,” Rachel snaps back, “Look, you got what you wanted. Jesse isn’t directing that friend of yours. Have a nice day.” The line goes dead.

Kurt basically slams his phone on his coffee table. Ten minutes later, he picks it up to call Mercedes so that they can rant about Rachel’s behaviour. Since he’s so caught up in it, he doesn’t realise what this means till he’s in bed, ready to go to sleep.

Blaine’s been lying to him.

* * *

“He’s cancelled again,” Blaine says, “This is the last straw.”

“I bet it is,” Kurt says and he makes his way to the living room to greet Layla and Suzanne. Blaine’s a bit dumbfounded because he didn’t expect Kurt’s short reply, but he goes to his room to change anyway.

“Hello again,” Suzanne hugs him. Layla also waves.

“Kurt food yes?” Layla asks and Kurt laughs.

“Yes, I will make you something tasty, but is it okay if I talk to daddy real quick?” he asks her, “I think I need to ask him something.”

Layla nods.

Even though he’s never been in it, Kurt knows where to find Blaine’s room. It’s the one next to the room Layla and Suzanne share. He’s not in the mood for knocking, so he just opens the door. 

“Kurt? What is it?” Blaine’s standing in front of his closet and he’s holding two pair of pants.

“Okay, I need you to be honest with me and I need that right now,” Kurt says angrily, “Why on Earth have you been lying to me?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Blaine says, genuinely confused.

“Oh you will,” Kurt takes Blaine’s shoulders and makes him sit down on the bed, “Why have you been telling me that your director has been cancelling on you when that’s an absolute lie? Why would you lie about something like that?”

“Kurt, calm down. What you’re saying is-”

“The truth,” Kurt says, “The truth you haven’t been telling me. Jesse St. James hasn’t been cancelling on you, because he’s never even met you. He’s not a possible director to you, Blaine. I’ve talked to his wife and she confirmed that he doesn’t direct Off-Broadway.”

Blaine looks like a deer caught in the headlights. “Kurt, I- I can explain!” 

“Explain what? Again, why would you lie about something like that?” Kurt asks, “You know I care about your work. Don’t you think it’s important enough to share? Do you think I don’t believe that you are successful? You got a job offer in New York, I know you are successful! I just don’t understand… I know I never really asked about it, but that doesn’t mean that I don’t give a damn and that you can lie about it.”

Kurt loves everything about Blaine, but he just wished he’d also known everything about Blaine. It’s been months since he, Layla, and Suzanne first came to the restaurant for breakfast, but Kurt still doesn’t know Blaine. Blaine never let him in.

Or Kurt thought he did, but apparently Blaine had lied.

“It’s not that,” Blaine says desperately.

“Then what is it?” Kurt yells.

“I didn’t know another way to make you stay!” Blaine yells back and he gets up. He drops both pair of pants, but he doesn’t care. “You only came over for the kids and I just… I wanted you to stay here for me as well. The first time that they cancelled, the actor really got food poisoning, and at first I wasn’t sure if I wanted you around. I love you and you already broke my heart by leaving every time I came home, so you sure as hell were capable of breaking it while staying, but you stayed and I loved it and I wanted more of it.”

Both men stare at each other in silence.

“You love me?” Kurt asks and Blaine hides his head in his hands. He falls back on the bed again. Even though he’s still not meeting Kurt’s eyes, he nods, and Kurt- he can’t even describe the feeling that goes through him.

Blaine loves him.

_Blaine loves him._

Kurt sits next to him. “Look at me. Why didn’t you say so?”

Blaine doesn’t look at him, but he does say: “I noticed you the minute I first saw you. I thought you were beautiful and I heard you talk to Gloria every now and then and I though you were funny and sweet and all that. Then you started talking to me and the kids and I guess my feelings just…” He trails off and sighs.

“And the next thing I know, I woke up every morning hoping you’d be at work. I smiled on the says you were and almost cried on the days you weren’t. But I was leaving, and I tried to protect myself. My marriage was awful and it took a divorce for me to finally notice and I can’t go into another relationship blindly, especially since I have two kids. I left and I resigned myself to never seeing you again, but then my kids wanted to have you back and I fell more for you and then I gave in. I couldn’t lie to myself anymore. I really love you.”

“I love you too,” Kurt tells him and Blaine immediately looks at him. His eyes are wide and he’s gaping at Kurt.

“Y-you do?” he asks in disbelief.

“I do,” Kurt says and smiles, “Maybe this will confirm it for you.”

He leans in to kiss Blaine. It’s short, but perfect. When Kurt pulls away, Blaine has a blissful look on his face.

“You believe me now?” Kurt says jokingly.

Blaine nods his head eagerly.

Kurt is about to lean in for a second kiss when they hear a knock on the door.

“Kurt food?” Layla asks from the other side.

Both men groan.

* * *

After the kids have been fed and put to bed, Kurt and Blaine are on the couch. They’re kissing lazily. It’s not rushed or heated, but they’re both relaxed.

“Man, I’ve wanted this for so long,” Kurt says happily.

Blaine hums. “Me too.”

“Then why didn’t you say so?” Kurt asks while Blaine’s kissing his neck, “You didn’t have to lie about Jesse St. James from all people cancelling every meeting.”

“I was convinced you wouldn’t like me back,” Blaine admits, “Who would like a divorced man with two kids? My life’s too busy already.”

Kurt makes him stop kissing by pushing him away. “Blaine, you idiot!”

“What?”

“I don’t care about that,” Kurt says, “Sure, I didn’t expect to date someone with kids, and we can’t ignore them, but I love Layla and Suzanne. Sure, in the beginning I didn’t know how to act on that, but it wouldn’t stop me from being with you.”

Blaine shakes his head.

“Gosh, we could’ve started kissing weeks ago,” Blaine laughs, “If only we weren’t so stubborn.”

“Yes, if only…” Kurt says and he pulls Blaine closer again, “But better late than never, right?”

* * *

Kurt shakes Suzanne awake.

“Princess, Princes, wake up, today is the big day,” he says sweetly. Suzanne throws a pillow at him. He doesn’t know if it’s because she doesn’t want to wake up, or because of the nickname.

Kurt’s started calling Suzanne Princess when she turned five and entered another Disney phase. By now, she’s twelve years old and she claims that she’s too old for Disney, but Kurt knows better.

Just as Blaine says: you’re never too old for Disney.

“Come on, Princess, or do I need to get your sister to wake you?” That must’ve triggered it, because Suzanne throws the comforter off herself and she rushes past Kurt to the bathroom. Even though Suzanne no longer shares a room with Layla, she still remembers the horrors of her sister waking her up.

Kurt chuckles. He moves to the next room. Layla’s still fast asleep, but she’s always been a sleeper. Not even an earthquake can wake her up, but she needs to wake up today.

Kurt shakes her several times. He turns on all the lights and draws the curtains. He even turns on the radio at almost top volume.

“Blaine, come here!” he yells, “Your daughter won’t wake up.”

He can hear Blaine laugh as he walks towards Layla’s room. “Soon, she’ll be your daughter as well.” 

“She already is,” Kurt says, and it’s the truth. 

Over the past eight years, a lot has changed. A few months after Kurt and Blaine started dating, Kurt and his cat (who’s passed away a year after that) moved in. Blaine’s Off-Broadway show became a success. Kurt no longer works at the restaurant, but he will always be greeted as a VIP, and it’s not because he’s finally made a name for himself as well.

Blaine didn’t boost his career, as many think. On the contrary, Blaine’s own successful career had nothing to do with Kurt’s. Just because they’re together doesn’t mean that Blaine called in a favour. He did encourage Kurt to audition for the Broadway show that ended up launching Kurt’s career. 

Though they are working on a musical together and they’re very excited. 

The kids grew fast, or at least, that’s what both men claim. When Layla turned four, they decided to move to a bigger place outside the center. Kurt and Blaine miss the city and they hate commuting, but they both know it’s better for the kids. They have a big garden and Suzanne has planted some strawberries. When she’s not busy kicking people’s asses at her kickboxing lessons, she’s busy with her plants. Layla is following her fathers’ footsteps. She’s always been dramatic, so she joined the Young Drama Team at her school.

“I can’t believe Layla basically refuses to wake up on our wedding day,” Blaine shakes his head, “She’s the one who insisted on her being flower girl after Suzanne stepped down.”

“Layla,  _Layla!_ ” Kurt tries again.

They hear a laugh from the doorway. “And Papa 2 thought I was bad,” Suzanne says, amused.

“For the last time, quit calling Kurt Papa 2,” Blaine says.

“He won’t stop calling me Princess,” Suzanne says back.

“I won’t,” Kurt confirms and Suzanne throws her hands in the air. 

“Case closed, Papa 2 gives in,” she says. Kurt doesn’t mind her calling him Papa 2. It started as a joke, but it stayed. When Kurt and Blaine decided to tell them they were dating, Kurt tried to give them the usual ‘I am not trying to replace your parent’ speech, but he couldn’t.

Everyone knew the truth: he so was replacing Blaine’s ex-husband. Rightfully so.

Suzanne was a four years old girl back then, so her imagination came up with ‘Papa 2′ to show that he replaces her Papa. Layla started saying it as well. It annoys Blaine a lot, since he doesn’t like being reminded of his dick of an ex-husband, but even he knows that it won’t change.

Out of nowhere, Layla’s eyes open.

“Did I miss the wedding?” she yells and sits up in panic. 

“No, not yet,” Blaine reassures her, “You still have a couple of hours left. First, Papa 2-″ he sighs “-will go to Mercedes to get changed, okay? I will go to Wes, and Gloria will take the two of you to the venue, remember?”

“I still don’t get why you two don’t want to see each other before the wedding,” Layla rolls her eyes, but at least she’s calm.

“Come on, Layla! It is finally time for Dad to have his fairy tale wedding! Get up!” Suzanne says loudly.

“I thought you were too old for your Disney phase, Princess?” Kurt says and Suzanne shakes his head.

“Whatever, Papa 2, I will never be too old to enjoy a fairy tale wedding.”

And she’s right. When Kurt and Blaine exchange their vows later that day, in front of their friends, family, and of course, kids, they realise it really feels like a fairy tale wedding.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading. I hope you love Layla and Suzanne as much as I do. The little things like he obsession with a certain kind of fruit, “Layla” not wanting to sit down, and “Suzanne” asking to marry me are all real. Hell, even the man who pissed against a building and a woman who’s been staying at the hotel for two years are real.
> 
> The names Layla and Suzanne (Suzanne’s either pronounced in the Dutch or English way, if you want to choose) were picked at random. At first I wanted to write with the Klaine kids (Hepburn, Tracy) or my Klaine kids (Maddie, Rachel), but then I realised that these kids aren’t Kurt and Blaine’s. They’re Blaine’s and his ex-husband’s. In case you’re interested: after picking the names, I based Layla on Layla/Aïsha from Winx Club, since I was in the middle of a Winx phase while writing this, and Suzanne on the actual “Suzanne”.
> 
> Also, can you guess the identity of Blaine’s ex-husband? If you don’t know, then you can wait for the Blaine’s POV part. 
> 
> Last, but not least: happy 5th birthday Gloria Fallon.
> 
> Again, thank you for reading.


End file.
